Electronic Commerce Using Streaming Media

ABSTRACT

The disclosure provides for electronic commerce using streaming media. (1) E-commerce opportunities are combined with incentives (e.g., random, pseudo-random, skill-based, or responsive to aggregate buying) for participation by recipients, enhancing the likelihood of responses from recipients and the value of distribution of the promotional information. (2) Techniques are applied to a server associated with e-commerce opportunities, to avoid unduly burdening that server. An applet may conduct the interactive process with the recipient and present results to the server, implement the incentives, conduct e-commerce transactions with the recipient, and select one or more recipients for an incentive reward. (3) The promotional material is associated with elements of the streaming media being presented, such as an actor or object. Presentation of promotional material at a device can be responsive to information about the recipient, gleaned from, for example: demographic information, preferences, fuzzy searching, or collaborative filtering.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to electronic commerceusing streaming media, such is as used in conjunction with a broadcastor internetworking environment.

2. Related Art

Broadcast of information and related methods (such as closed caption,community television systems, multicast, narrow-cast, orvideoconferencing) allow recipients to receive streaming media, such asstreaming audio or video shows, or combinations thereof. Streaming mediacan now be delivered to recipients using a large number of methods,including electromagnetic broadcast, network multicast, and switchedsystem delivery.

Computer communication and computer networks allow people and businessesthat are otherwise distant from each other to contact each other andexchange information. One advantageous use of computer communication isto allow commercial transactions to be conducted electronically betweenbuyers and sellers. This form of commerce (“electronic commerce” or“e-commerce”) can include advertising, catalog information, orderplacement, and order tracking.

One problem in the known art is how best to promote e-commerce todisparate users without using undue amounts of resources for delivery ofe-commerce advertising, e-commerce offers and other e-commerceinformation. This problem is exacerbated with regard to goods andservices that might be of interest to large numbers of customers, butfor which exchange of e-commerce information does not scale well withthose large numbers.

Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a technique forelectronic commerce using streaming media, such as used in conjunctionwith a broadcast or inter-networking environment. This advantage isachieved in embodiments of the invention in which non-obviousimprovements are made. (1) E-commerce opportunities, such as promotionalinformation, are combined with incentives for participation, thusenhancing the likelihood of responses from recipients and enhancing thevalue of distribution of the promotional information. (2) Techniques areapplied to reduce load on an e-commerce server associated with thee-commerce opportunities, so that relatively large numbers of recipientscan respond to e-commerce opportunities without unduly burdening thatserver. (3) E-commerce opportunities and promotional material areassociated with elements of the streaming media and possiblypersonalized for individual recipients.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a method and system for electronic commerce usingstreaming media, such as used in conjunction with a broadcast orinternetworking environment.

In a first aspect of the invention, e-commerce opportunities (forexample, hyperlinks or pointers to other streaming media, such asadvertising or further promotional material) in streaming media arecombined with incentives for participation by recipients. This enhancesthe likelihood of responses from recipients and enhances the value ofdistribution of the promotional information with the streaming media.Incentives can be random or pseudo-random, skill-based, or responsive toaggregate buying.

In a second aspect of the invention, techniques are applied to reduceload on an e-commerce server associated with the e-commerceopportunities, so that relatively large numbers of recipients canrespond to e-commerce opportunities without unduly burdening thatserver. An applet (possibly encrypted) conducts the interactive processwith the recipient and presents results to the server. The applet canimplement the incentives, can conduct all or part of the e-commercetransaction with the recipient, and can operate in conjunction or inparallel with the server to select one or more recipients for anincentive reward.

In a third aspect of the invention, presentation of the e-commerceopportunities and the promotional material at the receiving device areresponsive to personalized information about the recipient, gleaned fromone or more of: demographic information, stated preferences, fuzzysearching, or collaborative filtering.

The invention provides an enabling technology for generalized electroniccommerce using streaming media, to obtain substantial advantages andcapabilities that are novel and non-obvious in view of the known art.Examples described below relate to sales of goods or services, but theinvention is broadly applicable to many different types of transactions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a system including electronic commerceusing streaming media, such as used in conjunction with a broadcast orinternetworking environment.

FIG. 2 shows a process flow diagram of a method for operating a systemincluding electronic commerce using streaming media, such as used inconjunction with a broadcast or internetworking environment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the following description, a preferred embodiment of the invention isdescribed with regard to preferred process steps and data structures.Embodiments of the invention can be implemented using general purposeprocessors or special purpose processors operating under programcontrol, or other circuits, adapted to particular process steps and datastructures described herein. Implementation of the process steps anddata structures described herein would not require undue experimentationor further invention.

As noted above, the invention provides a method and system forelectronic commerce using streaming media, such as used in conjunctionwith a broadcast or inter-networking environment.

Lexicography

As used herein, use of the following terms refer or relate to aspects ofthe invention as described below. The descriptions of general meaningsof these terms are not intended to be limiting, only illustrative.

-   -   streaming media—in general, a time-varying sequence of data        intended for presentation to a recipient        -   For example, streaming media can include animation, audio            information, motion picture or video information, still            pictures in sequence, or other time-varying data. In a more            general sense, streaming media can include non-visual data            such as stock market information or telemetry.    -   element—in general, a distinguishable object (distinguishable by        viewers) in a sequence of streaming media, such as a picture of        a selected actor in an “action-adventure” television show    -   e-commerce—in general, transactions conducted using a        communication link or a processing device        -   For example, e-commerce can include ordering goods or            services using a communication medium such as the internet,            even if delivery of those goods or performance of those            services is in person. In a more general sense, e-commerce            can include transactions that are wholly performed using            communication, such as bank transfers, credit card            transactions, or futures or stock market trading. Although            most examples of e-commerce include exchange of money or            other things of value, the concept of e-commerce is broad            enough to include charitable activity such as donations or            gifts.    -   promotional information—in general, information presented to a        recipient to encourage or entice that recipient to participate        in an e-commerce or related activity.        -   For example, an e-commerce opportunity or promotional            information can include an advertisement, information about            a product or service, an offer for sale, or a hyperlink or            pointer to an advertisement, to information, or to an offer.    -   recipient—in general, a person (or set of people) receiving and        viewing the streaming media        -   Although the description herein is related to individuals as            recipients, a recipient can be an agent for an organization,            such as a business, charitable, or governmental            organization.    -   hyperlink or pointer—in general, information leading to a data        object available to the recipient        -   In a preferred embodiment, the hyperlink or pointer can be a            URL (uniform resource locator) or equivalent usage in a            broadcast or interactive context.    -   show—in general, a defined element of streaming media, such as        an episode of “Star Trek” (possibly containing subelements such        as commercial breaks) or a “chat room” event    -   e-commerce incentive—in general, an opportunity, option, or        chance to receive something of value in exchange for        participating in e-commerce, such as an entry into a drawing for        winning a prize for making an e-commerce response    -   e-commerce opportunity—in general, a time when a viewer can        participate in e-commerce, such as a time to request further        information or to purchase goods or services    -   random or pseudo-random—in general, responsive to a process that        is unpredictable to the viewer, such as a computer program        random number generator    -   skill-based—in general, responsive to a measurable ability of        the viewer, such as hand-eye coordination, logical reasoning, or        memory    -   aggregate-based—in general, responsive to a statistical measure        of a set of individuals, such as a highest bid or a quickest        response    -   e-commerce response—in general, an attempt by a recipient to        participate in e-commerce, such as by requesting further        information, purchasing goods or services, or entering a contest    -   applet—in general, a program designed to be sent to the        recipient and performed at the recipient's presentation device,        such as (but not limited to) a Java applet, a Javascript        program, or an executable program    -   highlight—in general, to emphasize for additional likelihood of        being noticed        -   For example, a highlighted distinguishable object or element            can be backlit, blinking, brighter or darker, florescent,            shimmering, translucent, or some other effect (not            necessarily visual). and    -   personalized information—in general, information about the        recipient that is specific to that person (even if in relation        to others)        -   For example, personalized information can include            demographic information (such as the age, sex, income, home            community, profession, or spending habits of the            individual), stated preferences (such as interests the            individual has expressed), or implied preferences (such as            concluded by reference to other e-commerce opportunities or            shows the recipient has participated in or received).

As described herein, the scope and spirit of the invention is notlimited to the specific examples shown herein, but is intended toinclude the most general concepts embodied by these and other terms.

System Elements

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a system including electronic commerceusing streaming media, such as used in conjunction with a broadcast orinternetworking environment.

A system 100 includes a media distributor device 110, a streaming mediadata stream 120, a communication link 130, a recipient client device140, a set of viewers 150, and an e-commerce server 160.

As used herein, the terms “distributor” and “recipient” refer torelationships between the distributor and the recipient, not necessarilyto particular physical devices. In general, a distributor providescontent for sending to other devices, and a recipient receives thatcontent and presents it to a user at that location. There is noparticular requirement that either the distributor or the recipient mustbe a single device; they may comprise portions of one device,combinations of multiple devices, or some blend thereof.

Moreover, there is no particular requirement that a distributor or arecipient must have that single role within the system 100. Thus, adistributor with regard to a first set of recipients can be a recipientwith regard to a second set of distributors. For example, anintermediate distributor can take on the role of either a distributor ora recipient in the system 100.

As used herein, the terms “client” and “server” refer to relationshipsbetween the client and the server, not necessarily to particularphysical devices.

As used herein, the phrase “client device” includes any device taking onthe role of a client in a client-server relationship (such as an HTTPweb client and web server). There is no particular requirement that anyclient devices must be individual physical devices; they can each be asingle device, a set of cooperating devices, a portion of a device, orsome combination thereof.

As used herein, the phrase “server device” includes any device taking onthe role of a server in a client-server relationship. There is noparticular requirement that server devices must be individual physicaldevices; they can each be a single device, a set of cooperating devices,a portion of a device, or some combination thereof.

There is no particular requirement that the distributor device 110 mustuse any particular distribution technology. In a preferred embodiment,the distributor device 110 uses either a television broadcast or a IP(interne protocol) multicast technology. However, other and furtherforms of distribution are usable with the invention, and are within thescope and spirit thereof For example, the distributor device 110 can usea cable television, closed-circuit, or satellite television distributionsystem, an intranet, extranet, virtual private network, ATM or framerelay network, a LAN (local area network), WAN (wide area network), orsome combination of any or all of these distribution technologies.

The distributor device 110 includes a substantive content element 111for formatting and possibly storing substantive content for distributionusing the streaming media data stream 120. In a preferred embodiment,the substantive content element 111 is coupled to and uses a massstorage element 112 such as a magnetic tape or optical disk for storingsubstantive content. However, in alternative embodiments, it may occurthat the substantive content element 111 is used to generate contentdynamically (such as when the content is generated by a live camera),and that intermediate storage is substantially evanescent.

The distributor device 110 includes a promotional content element 113for formatting and possibly storing promotional content for embeddinginto and distribution using the streaming media data stream 120. In apreferred embodiment, the promotional content element 113 uses the massstorage element 112 for storing promotional content. However, inalternative embodiments, it may occur that the promotional contentelement 113 is used to generate content dynamically (such as when thecontent is generated by a random or pseudo-random software element), andthat intermediate storage is substantially evanescent.

The distributor device 110 includes a sending element 115 for sendingthe streaming media data stream 120.

There is no particular requirement that the distributor device 110 mustuse any particular format for distribution of the streaming media datastream 120. In a preferred embodiment, the streaming media data stream120 can include an NTSC, PAL, or SECAM television signal, or can includean MPEG, MHEG, or other audiovisual signal encoding. However, other andfurther other and further forms of signal encoding are usable with theinvention, and are within the scope and spirit thereof. For example, thestreaming media data stream 120 can include an AVI format data stream,an Apple “Quicklime” data stream, a MOV format data stream, a“RealAudio” or “RealVideo” data stream, or some combination thereof.

The streaming media data stream 120 includes a set of substantivecontent information 121, a set of promotional content information 122,and a set of promotional assistance information 123 embedded therein.The substantive content information 121, the promotional contentinformation 122, and the promotional assistance information 123 areembedded in a single streaming media data stream 120.

In a first preferred embodiment, the embedding technique uses in-bandbroadcast techniques for the substantive content information 121 (suchas a main NTSC signal) and out-of-band broadcast techniques (such as theVBI portion of the NTSC signal) for the promotional content information122 and the promotional assistance information 123.

In a second preferred embodiment, the embedding technique uses anenhanced television standard, such as the ATVEF (Advanced TelevisionEnhancement Forum) standard recently promulgated by the ATVEFconsortium.

In alternative embodiments, the streaming media data stream 120 caninclude multiple channels, multiplexed data streams, or other or furthertechniques for distributing the substantive content information 121, thepromotional content information 122, and the promotional assistanceinformation 123 to the recipient client device 140.

The communication link 130 includes any form of distribution channelthat allows the distributor device 110 to distribute the streaming mediadata stream 120 to the recipient client device 140. In a preferredembodiment, the communication link 130 can include a broadcasttelevision channel portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, or aninternetwork having multicast packet distribution capability (such asusing IGMP or a similar multicast packet distribution protocol).However, other and further communication links, as described above withregard to other and further techniques for distribution, are usable withthe invention, and are within the scope and spirit thereof.

The recipient client device 140 includes a receiving element 141, apresentation element 142, a viewer feedback element 143, and apresentation assistance element 144.

The receiving element 141 is disposed for receiving the streaming mediadata stream 120 and possibly recording information therein. In apreferred embodiment, the receiving element 141 can include a televisionsignal tuner or a modem or other internet connection for receiving IPpackets. In a preferred embodiment, the receiving element 141 includesat least some memory 145 for buffering at least part of the streamingmedia data stream 120. However, in alternative embodiments, it may occurthat the receiving element 141 is used to decode content dynamically andcouple that content directly to the presentation element 142, and thatintermediate storage is substantially evanescent.

The presentation element 142 is disposed for presenting information tothe viewer 150. In a preferred embodiment, the presentation element 142includes a television screen or a computer monitor, and is disposed forpresenting full-motion animation and video at a resolution comparable orbetter than known television systems.

The viewer feedback element 143 is disposed for receiving viewerfeedback and decoding that feedback to determine whether the viewer 150wishes to participate in an e-commerce opportunity.

In a preferred embodiment, the viewer feedback element 143 includes aremote-control cursor positioning device, such as used as aremote-control television controller and having buttons 146 for moving apointer and selecting an distinguishable object or element 147 beingpresented by the presentation element 142.

In alternative embodiments, the viewer feedback element 143 may includea mouse or other pointing device, a biometric feedback device such as amotion detector or sound detector, or some other means by which theviewer 150 can indicate an element 147 being presented by thepresentation element 142.

The presentation assistance element 144 is disposed for assisting theviewer 150 in presenting promotional content information 122 to theviewer 150 and for receiving promotional assistance information 123 foruse by the recipient client device 140.

In a preferred embodiment, the recipient client device 140 includes aprocessor with program and data memory, and the promotional assistanceinformation 123 includes an applet or other executable or interpretableprogram or program fragment for interaction with the viewer 150. Forexample, the promotional assistance information 123 can include a Javaapplet, a Javascript script, an executable program, an interactive Perlscript, interactive DHTML or interactive HTML content, or somecombination thereof In a preferred embodiment, the recipient clientdevice 140 uses the promotional assistance information 123 to interactwith the viewer 150, so as to present the promotional contentinformation 122 and to receive indications of interest, or actualproduct or service orders, from the viewer 150.

The set of viewers 150 includes one or more individual people, hopefullypaying attention to the presentation element 142. In alternativeembodiments, the viewers 150 may include communication devices or otherdevices for further distributing information to viewers 150, or mayinclude artificial intelligences, programmed devices or other devicesset to respond to the presentation element 142.

The e-commerce server 160 includes a processor and program and datamemory, and is disposed to conduct a set of e-commerce transactions withan e-commerce client. In a preferred embodiment, the recipient clientdevice 140 uses the presentation assistance element 144 to conducte-commerce transactions with the e-commerce server 160.

Method of Operation

FIG. 2 shows a process flow diagram of a method for operating a systemincluding electronic commerce using streaming media, such as used inconjunction with a broadcast or internetworking environment.

A method 200 is performed by the system 100. Although the method 200 isdescribed serially, the steps of the method 200 can be performed byseparate elements in conjunction or in parallel, whether asynchronously,in a pipelined manner, or otherwise. There is no particular requirementthat the method 200 be performed in the same order in which thisdescription lists the steps, except where so indicated.

At a flow point 210, the distributor device 110 is ready to generate thestreaming media data stream 120.

At a step 211, the distributor device 110 integrates the substantivecontent information 121, the promotional content information 122, andthe promotional assistance information 123 into the streaming media datastream 120.

At a step 212, the distributor device 110 uses the sending element 115to send the streaming media data stream 120 to the communication link130.

At a step 213, the communication link 130 delivers the streaming mediadata stream 120 to the recipient client device 140.

At a step 214, the recipient client device 140 receives the streamingmedia data stream 120 using the receiving element 141.

At a step 215, the receiving element 141 parses the streaming media datastream 120 to determine the substantive content information 121, thepromotional content information 122, and the promotional assistanceinformation 123. In a preferred embodiment, the substantive contentinformation 121 includes a television show or other time-seriesinformation for presentation to the viewer 150.

At a step 216, the recipient client device 140 uses the presentationelement 142 to present the substantive content information 121 to theviewer 150. In a preferred embodiment where the substantive contentinformation 121 includes a television show, the substantive contentinformation 121 includes a set of distinguishable object or elements 147therein. In a preferred embodiment, these elements 147 can includeindividual objects in the television show, textual or graphical captionsin the television show, or background scenes in the television show.

At a step 217, the recipient client device 140 uses the viewer feedbackelement 143 to receive feedback from the viewer 150. In a preferredembodiment where the viewer feedback element 143 includes a pointingdevice, the recipient client device 140 uses the presentation element142 to present modify the presentation of the substantive contentinformation 121 to respond to those elements 147 to which the viewer 150points.

For example, if the viewer 150 uses the viewer feedback element 143 topoint to an element 147 in the television show, the recipient clientdevice 140 can use the presentation element 142 to perform one or moreof, or some combination of, the following actions:

-   -   The presentation element 142 can highlight or otherwise        emphasize the selected element 147 to indicate to the viewer 150        that the selected element 147 includes an e-commerce        opportunity. For example, the presentation element 142 can        highlight an actress to indicate that the viewer 150 can buy a        song or movie starring that actress, or can highlight an article        of clothing to indicate that the viewer 150 can buy a copy        thereof.    -   The presentation element 142 can alter the presentation, such as        by including at least some of the promotional content        information 122 in the presentation. For example, the        presentation element 142 can present a textual description of        the e-commerce opportunity in a caption or other region of a        display screen.        and    -   The presentation element 142 can use the promotional assistance        information 123 to initiate an e-commerce transaction, if        selected by the viewer 150. For example, if the viewer 150 can        selects an element 147 that is highlighted, and use the viewer        feedback element 143 to assent with a “YES” or “BUY THIS” button        146. The presentation element 142 would use the promotional        assistance information 123 to perform an applet or other script        to conduct an e-commerce transaction.

The recipient client device 140 uses the presentation assistance element144 to assist the viewer 150 with participating in the e-commerceopportunity.

In a preferred embodiment, the recipient client device 140 usespersonalization information about the viewer 150 to determine which, ifany, e-commerce opportunities or promotional material to present to theviewer 150. The personalization information can include one or more of,or some combination of, the following:

-   -   Demographic information, such as the viewer's age, sex, viewing        location, home address, work address, occupation, annual income,        or assets.    -   Stated preferences, such as subjects or products the viewer 150        has stated they are interested in, or implied they are        interested in by making purchases.        and    -   Fuzzy searching or collaborative filtering, such as subjects or        products the viewer 150 might be interested in by reference to        those other products the viewer 150 has purchased or the        television show the viewer 150 is watching.

The method 200 proceeds with the flow point 220.

E-Commerce Incentives

At a flow point 220, the viewer 150 is ready to possibly participate ina selected e-commerce transaction.

At a step 221, the recipient client device 140 uses the presentationelement 142 to present an incentive for participating in the selectede-commerce transaction. As part of this step, the recipient clientdevice 140 uses at least some of the promotional content information 122to present to the viewer 150 the nature of the incentive.

As noted herein, the nature of the incentive can be one or more of, orsome combination of, the following:

-   -   The incentive can be a random or pseudo-random incentive. For        example, the viewer 150 can be informed that all those persons        who make a purchase within the next 15 minutes will be entered        into a drawing for a new car. Similarly, the viewer 150 can be        informed that, of all those persons who make a purchase within        the next 15 minutes, one will receive a 50% discount on price.        -   In a preferred embodiment, the random or pseudo-random            e-commerce incentive includes one or more of the following:        -   (a) The Nth person to engage in the e-commerce opportunity            (similar to the 31^(st) caller or the 14^(th) caller to call            into a radio show) is given a price discount. The price            discount might be that the product is free of charge, or            that a prize is awarded to that one person.        -   (b) The first N persons to engage in the e-commerce            opportunity (similar to the first 41 callers to call into a            radio show) are each given a similar price discount.        -   (c) A randomly selected person (similar to a randomly            selected person to call into a radio show) is given a            similar price discount. The randomly selected person can be            chosen from the pool of persons who engage in the e-commerce            opportunity within a set period of time, or selected from            all such persons.    -   The incentive can be a skill-based incentive. For example, the        viewer 150 can be challenged to conduct a test of skill (such as        answering a trivia question, performing a test of hand-eye        coordination, demonstrating accuracy or speed, or conducting a        strategy game), in conjunction with making a purchase. Those        viewers 150 who are successful at the test of skill would be        given a monetary reward, such as a free product or service, a        price discount, or a cash prize.        -   In a preferred embodiment, the skill-based e-commerce            incentive includes one or more of the following:        -   (a) If a question, the question can be one of: a question            about the product, a question about the show on which the            product or service is advertised, a question about the            advertisement itself.        -   (b) If a test of hand-eye coordination, the test can be a            video game or similar test.        -   (c) If a strategy cgame, the test can be a simple strategy            game, such as tic-tac-toe, or a more complex strategy game,            such as chess.            and    -   The incentive can be an aggregate buying incentive. For example,        the viewer 150 can be informed that the price of the product or        service is responsive to the number of viewers 150 making a        purchase in the next 15 minutes, where a larger number of        viewers 150 doing so provides a lower price to each.        -   In a preferred embodiment, the aggregate buying e-commerce            incentive includes one or more of the following:        -   (a) A price discount proportional to the aggregate price            savings if a relatively larger number of viewers 150 buy the            product.        -   (b) A price discount to all viewers if the number of viewers            150 buying the product exceeds a selected threshold. For            example, if at least 10,000 viewers 150 buy the product, all            of them get a discount; if fewer do, none get a discount.

As noted above, the incentive can be a blend or combination of thesetypes of incentives. For example, the viewer 150 can be informed that(a) the first 500 purchasers will receive a price discount or anadditional prize, (b) that some selected purchaser, such as the 314^(th)purchaser, will receive the product for free, or (c) some relatedincentive.

At a step 222, the viewer 150 determines whether to participate in theselected e-commerce transaction. If the viewer 150 determines not toparticipate, the method 200 continues with the flow point 210. If theviewer 150 determines to participate, the method 200 continues with thenext step.

At a step 223, the recipient client device 140 uses the presentationassistance element 144 to conduct the e-commerce transaction with theviewer 150. In a preferred embodiment, the presentation assistanceelement 144 can be encrypted or the viewer 150 can otherwise berestricted from unfettered access, so the viewer 150 cannot easily spoofthe presentation assistance element 144 into giving away an undeservedincentive. The presenation assistance element 144 gleans informationnecessary for the e-commerce transaction from the viewer 150 (such asselected product, quantity, method of payment, delivery location, andthe like), and conducts the portion of the e-commerce transactioninvolving the incentive.

As part of this step, the operation of the presentation assistanceelement 144 depends on the nature of the incentive. In general, thepresentation assistance element 144 can generate a random orpseudo-random value, or can engage the viewer 150 in a test of skill,using only information local to the recipient client device 140.However, some blended or combination incentives, or incentivesresponsive to aggregates, involve coordination between the presentationassistance element 144 and the e-commerce server 160.

Where the presentation assistance element 144 and the e-commerce server160 coordinate, the presentation assistance element 144 gleans as muchinformation from the viewer 150 as possible, so as to send thatinformation to the e-commerce server 160 without a protracted exchangeof protocol messages.

Thus for example, if the incentive is that the 314^(th) purchaserreceives the product for free, the presentation assistance element 144at each recipient client device 140 would determine a time-stamp for thepurchase, and would send that information to the e-commerce server 160(possibly later or with a staggered time delay). The e-commerce server160 would receive the individual data and determine a single winner forthe incentive. The e-commerce server 160 would inform the presentationassistance element 144 for the winning viewer 150 to that effect, whichwould in turn inform the winning viewer 150.

In a preferred embodiment, the e-commerce server 160 would broadcast toall presentation assistance elements 144 an identifier for each winningviewer 150, along with an indicator whether the incentive is still open.If the incentive is no longer open (for example, the 314^(th) purchasehas already been made), each presentation assistance element 144 wouldhave sufficient information to determine whether it should burden thee-commerce server 160 with any further requests for incentivedetermination.

Whether or not the viewer 150 won the incentive, the presentationassistance element 144 sends information for the e-commerce transactionto the e-commerce server 160. In a preferred embodiment, thisinformation is sent later or with a staggered time delay, so as toreduce instantaneous burden on the e-commerce server 160.

Generality of the Invention

The invention has general applicability to various fields of use, notnecessarily related to sales of goods or services as described above.Other and further applications of the invention in its most generalform, would be clear to those skilled in the art after perusal of thisapplication, and are within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Alternative Embodiments

Although preferred embodiments are disclosed herein, many variations arepossible which remain within the concept, scope, and spirit of theinvention, and these variations would become clear to those skilled inthe art after perusal of this application.

What is claimed is: 1-72. (canceled)
 73. A method comprising: receiving,by a client device of a network, program instructions that areexecutable by a processor of the client device; and executing theinstructions by the processor of the client device to cause the clientdevice to: perform an e-commerce transaction with a user of the clientdevice for purchase of an item, and transmit e-commerce results to acomputing device of the network.
 74. The method of claim 73, whereinreceiving the program instructions includes receiving a media streamthat includes the program instructions, media data and promotionalinformation.
 75. The method of claim 74, wherein the promotionalinformation includes an opportunity to purchase at least one itemcontained in said promotional content information.
 76. The method ofclaim 75, wherein said opportunity includes at least one incentive forparticipation by said user.
 77. The method of claim 76, wherein said atleast one incentive comprises an aggregate buying incentive where aprice for the item in the e-commerce transaction adjusts based on thee-commerce results.
 78. The method of claim 76, wherein said at leastone incentive comprises at least one of a random component, apseudo-random component, a skill-based competition, or a componentresponsive to aggregate buying history.
 79. The method of claim 78,further comprising: transmitting, from the client device, results of oneor more responses to said at least one incentive.
 80. The method ofclaim 73, wherein executing the program instructions by the processor ofthe client device further causes the client device to interact with saiduser of said client device, said interaction being personalized to saiduser according to at least one of: demographic information, preferenceinformation of said user, fuzzy searching or collaborative filtering.81. The method of claim 80, wherein the program instructions, whenexecuted by the processor of the client device, further causes theclient device to present to the user of the client device promotionalcontent comprising an incentive to purchase the item.
 82. The method ofclaim 81, wherein said incentive comprises at least one of a randomcomponent, a pseudo-random component, or a skill-based competition. 83.A method comprising: transmitting, to a plurality of client devices overa network, program instructions that are executable by a processor of aclient device, wherein the program instructions, when executed by theprocessor cause the client device to perform an e-commerce transactionwith a user of the client device for purchase of an item; and receiving,at a computing device of the network, e-commerce results from one ormore of the plurality of client devices.
 84. The method of claim 83,wherein transmitting the program instructions includes transmitting amedia stream that includes the program instructions, media data andpromotional information.
 85. The method of claim 84, further comprising:adjusting a price for the purchase of the item in the e-commerce resultsbased on a number of the e-commerce results received from the one ormore of the plurality of client devices.
 86. The method of claim 84,wherein the promotional information is based on one of: demographicinformation, preference information of said user, fuzzy searching orcollaborative filtering.
 87. The method of claim 84, wherein saidpromotional information includes at least one incentive forparticipation by said user, and wherein the method further comprises:receiving, from said plurality of client devices, results of one or moreresponses to said at least one incentive by users of said plurality ofclient devices; and responsively awarding a benefit to one of said usersof said plurality of client devices in accordance with said results ofone or more responses.
 88. The method of claim 83, wherein the programinstructions are encrypted.
 89. The method of claim 83, furthercomprising: integrating, by a media distributor device of the network,streaming media data and the program instructions into a media datastream.
 90. A system comprising: a media distributor device configuredto transmit, to a plurality of client devices over a network, programinstructions that are executable by a processor of a client device,wherein the program instructions, when executed by the processor causethe client device to perform an e-commerce transaction with a user ofthe client device for purchase of an item; and a computing deviceconfigured to receive e-commerce results from one or more of theplurality of client devices.
 91. The system of claim 90, wherein themedia distributor device is further configured to integrate streamingmedia data and the program instructions into a media data stream. 92.The system of claim 90, wherein the computing device is furtherconfigured to adjust a price for the purchase of the item in thee-commerce results based on a number of the e-commerce results receivedfrom the one or more of the plurality of client devices.